Day to day, the foundation goes about its work with an open door to the community, leaders say. With the "Forever St. Paul Challenge," the door is open even wider -- and to new and different voices -- to fund a proposal it might not receive via the traditional, formal grantmaking process. After several rounds of judging (with volunteer reviewers in the first and an expert panel in the second), the ultimate choice will be up to Minnesota residents in an online vote.

Ideas, according to the rules, are welcome "from anyone who loves St. Paul" -- from people who live here, work here or just visit every so often.

"We want ideas from Warroad and Eden Prairie," Ann Mulholland, vice president of grants and programs, told us. St. Paul is a "community that belongs to all of Minnesota. It's where the state convenes."

The effort's online home is the Minnesota Idea Open, the digital forum launched in 2010 with funding from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

It's also one of the more unusual legacies of the 2008 Republican National Convention in St.

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Paul, the Pioneer Press' Frederick Melo reported. The $1 million started as an open-ended donation from the Minneapolis-St. Paul 2008 Host Committee, the bipartisan group that persuaded the convention to come to St. Paul. The money, left over after the convention, was to be used for the betterment of the city.

More than 200 ideas already have been submitted, including projects to recycle, refurbish and distribute computers to individuals and organizations who need them; convert 100 vacant lots into a system of mini-parks, gardens, orchards and "edibly landscaped green spaces," and create a River Walk for shops, strolling and entertainment, like the one in San Antonio.

A total of 25 to 30 semi-finalists will be announced on May 9 at the Great River Gathering, St. Paul's annual "town dinner" celebration.

Three finalists will be selected by mid-August, and public voting will continue through the State Fair. The wining idea will be announced in the fall.

The idea should address three criteria: innovation, impact and sustainability. "We encourage you to think BIG," rules say, but "at the same time, your idea should have reasonable potential to become reality. If your idea is to create the first-ever space program for St. Paul, we'll tell you now that it's not going to make the cut."

And about those big dollars: "You don't have to explain in detail how you'll implement your idea, you just need to make it clear that it can be done."

Further, individuals are not eligible to receive the grant. Funds will go to an organization verified by the St. Paul Foundation that agrees to act as the fiscal agent for the project.

Submit ideas online, or by mail (Forever St. Paul Challenge entries, c/o Grassroots Solutions, 2828 University Avenue S.E., Suite 150, Minneapolis, MN 55414), by phone (612-217-1580), by email (info@MNIdeaOpen.org) or in person at one of a series of Idea Open House events -- six in St. Paul and one in Minneapolis: